Bloodlust
by WinchesterNimrod
Summary: As their third year begins the team start to notice something is different about Haruka. He's eating less and disappearing more often. What is he hiding? (Vampire Haru. Rated M for graphic content.)
1. Bloodlust: Part One

**Disclaimer: I do not own 'Free!'**

 **Guh! Look at me. Being so irresponsible as to start another story.**

 **Apologies in advance if the characters are not spot on.**

 **Warnings: Graphic violence and gore.**

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Bloodlust: Part 1

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The first thought Haru had when he woke up was how stupid he was to have fallen asleep on the floor. Followed by wondering _what_ had looked so enticing about the floor to begin with to had fallen asleep on it. Then trying to think back to the events leading up to his bizarre decision to lose consciousness in the bathroom of all places. In the end Haru gave up questioning on such pointless thoughts with a simple _whatever_ and heaved himself up into a sitting position. Immediately his head swam at the action and his neck stung painfully. It almost left him breathless.

Granted, that's what you get when you decide to camp out in the bathroom. If Rei ever finds out about this he'll surely cough up some statistics or recite a textbook about how bad it is for your spine or some other intellectual bullshit.

Hissing, his hand flew instinctively to his neck. As soon as his hand touched skin, flaring pain ignited like a fire. Spreading throughout his neck and up to the back of his skull. Pain pulsated through his veins in a heartbeat, muffling every sound he could hear. Yelping, Haru drew back his hand and grumbled curses in his foggy mind.

Just what he needed on the first day back to school. _Tch_.

Haru made a note in his mind to never sleep on the floor again. God, his neck hurts. Just as his hand came back into his line of sight, Haru ceased movement and blinked.

Blood?

 _Blood?!_

Touching his neck again Haru ignored the pain and double-checked to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Yup. His neck was bleeding. Jumping to his feet, Haru's knees shook with unease. Erratically, he made his way over to the sink. Leaning against it for support because holy hell his entire body felt weak as a kitten. Blinking to clear the sudden spots appearing in his vision, Haru looked at the mirror.

He gasped.

Blood covered his body like a fine sheet. It was matted in his hair, covered the left side of his face, splattered like a child's painting on his clothes, (he's sure he'll never be able to wear these pajamas again) there was so much of it; it made his stomach feel queasy he had to look away. A sour taste filled his mouth and Haru too take deep breaths to keep himself from throwing up.

 _Calm down. Calm down._

Quickly turning the tap on he grabbed the hand-towel, soaked it in water and started to rub it against his cheek. His skin trembled at the cool touch. By the time he got to his neck he hesitated. Then as gingerly as he could, almost like he was petting a newborn baby, Haru dabbed his neck. Pain flared, this time spreading down his spine. Haru cried out and gripped the sink to keep himself from falling.

" _Goddammit_!" Haru cursed through gritted teeth. What happened last night? All he remembered was going home after meeting with the swimming team -

 _He felt himself being pulled forward forcefully by his jacket collar. The scent of rotting meat attacking his nostrils and making his head swim -_

Gasping, Haru felt his mind tug and pull at the dormant memory. Carving itself out.

 _An arm so white and skeletal Haru shivered._

He groaned in agony as his brain throbbed trying to pul the shattered pieces of a memory back together.

This time there was a hand: _Pointed fingers that resembled more beast than man, reaching out towards his neck. Wrapping themselves around it, tugging him forward._ As the shadow of a figure lifted, Haru felt his insides shrivel. He almost gagged at the sight. _Its long sharp teeth buried themselves into his throat. The figure was a-_

"No!" Haru panted, not realizing how out of breath he felt when surfacing from the memory that now fell out of reach. His hands grasped his neck. Body shivering in fear at how wrong this all felt. "Not true. No such thing." Immediately his mind began to come up with plausible reasons.

He must have ate something weird at Makoto's. Maybe Nagisa put something in his drink? But then how did his neck get hurt— _No. Stop it_. A hysterical giggle bubbled up his throat as he stared at his neck in the reflection. Two small puncture wounds just barely visible amongst the flaky dried blood.

"I wasn't attacked by a _vampire_!"

 _They don't exist._

Then…how does he explain that grotesque creature he remembers? Hollowed cheeks, chalk-white skin, horrible dead looking eyes, and that smell. Haru almost gagged. There was no way of reasoning it. He was attacked by a vampire.

. . .

 _No. No. No._

He can't accept that. This was more Makoto's area of expertise than his. He doesn't believe in that crap. Ghosts, werewolves, santa, the easter bunny, _vampires_ , they're campfire stories told to little children to keep them from being naughty. For example: the boogeyman. Mothers told their children that if they misbehaved in anyway the boogeyman will come up from under their bed and take them away to his land of the damned. Yet, when they did misbehave nothing of the sort happened. Thus, the big bad boogeyman was just a story told to a child.

Haru isn't a child. So there's only one explanation left to what happened to him.

He was attacked by Satanists.

. . .

He sighed. Nope. That sounds worse. Groaning in exasperation, he slid down to hide his head against his knees and hugged himself. He didn't like being afraid or feeling helpless. It kept him from feeling _free._ He's trapped.

After some moments of wallowing his stomach growled.

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As soon as a slice of mackerel was in his mouth Haru spat it out. Retching and heaving at the texture of paste, some bits were still stuck in his teeth like glue. The oil he used to cook the Mackerel on was similar to engine oil instead of the slick salty taste it should be. Glancing at his plate that lay a whole cooked fish of mackerel, Haru suddenly felt disgusted. What did he just try and eat? Maybe…maybe it was only that bit. He loves mackerel.

Cutting off another piece, Haru wearily chewed it.

 _Revolting!_

" _Ugh!_ " Haru chocked and spat out the fish. His stomach churning and gurgling in a threatening manner.

 _It was like eating pigs fat!_

What in the world?

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 **Review if you would like another chapter.**

 **I also accept helpful criticism.**


	2. Bloodlust: Part Two

**Disclaimer: I do not own 'Free!'**

 **Forgive me if Haru may seem a little OOC right now.**

 **Short chapters, yeah. Hopefully they'll progress.**

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Bloodlust: Part Two

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Garlic _burned_ him.

One moment Haru's raving the cabinets and fridge like a mad man, trying to find _something_ that'll ease this emptiness at the pit of his stomach. He was _ravenous_. The ache for food felt as though his entire body was on fire. Muscles, veins, tendons, the lot. And with that one thought in mind, something burned him.

Haru yelled curses and hissed in pain, shoving his burnt hand under cool rushing water. Glancing over at what he touched, a single garlic was lying on the floor. It's leaves smoking from where he touched it.

He stood there. Feeling ill.

This was _not_. _Happening_.

Haru wasn't an idiot. He could read the signs. Hell, they might as well be flashing red and dancing the Macarena in front of his eyes. Sure he wasn't very convinced at first, but suddenly being allergic to garlic so severely, that his hand is currently sizzling under cold water is an oh so convincing argument. Need he mention the recent strings of freak accidents roaming about this town lately. All victims suspiciously drained of blood.

Doesn't mean he's happy.

Oh no.

Haru's pissed.

And hungry.

Then it dawned on him. What to _fledgling_ vampires (the notion made him shiver, he's still in denial) eat? Blood.

Lots and lots of blood.

Oh how it terrified him at the unexpected want and _need_ to taste blood boiling up inside of him. To feel it spill down his throat and plash across his lips. He could feel his mouth salivating at the thought. A dormant primal instinct that Haru's sure never existed before, burned bright and sent electricity running through his veins.

He could just see himself hunting down his prey. Watching as joints tense and flex in fear at feeling something following them from the corner of their eye. He could _smell_ his future prey's fragrance _(lavender and chlorine)_ as he sucks the life out of them in a bloody mess. Penetrating the flesh of their neck, feeling it vibrate under him as they scream out and cry as he drains the life from of them. Ah he can almost taste how little Gou would feel underneath him.

"No!" His burnt fist pounded the sink in horror (not even noticing how he dented the metal, the skin on his palm knitting itself back together and shedding it's scarred crusty skin) at the sheer thought of what he had just imagined. And not feeling a speck of guilt.

It was _wrong_. Everything was so horribly wrong.

He can't imagine such things and not feel remorse. But it was just that right? It's all in his head. He couldn't hurt Gou.

Gou was like a sister to him and the thought of feeling her body slowly drained away of life. _The taste of her sweet innocent blood exploding on the tip of his tongue, making his breaths come out in stutters._

"Stop it!" Haru muttered to himself in disgust, trying to reign in his sudden uncontrollable urge. Which was considerably harder than holding back his temper.

As a child Haru got angry at the smallest of things that childs normally do. But Haru's temper was stuff of a parent's nightmare. Punching holes into walls resulting in hospital visits, breaking whatever that was within his range of grasp, and regularly blowing up on his parents for any given reason whatsoever. The only other person besides his family that has been on the receiving end of his fury was Makato. The poor boy didn't smile for a week.

So. It was a god blessing when Haru joined Iwatobi's Swim Club. Everything just melted away when he was in the water. He was free of everything that pained his soul. It was like he was floating in orbit, staring out into the Milky Way that was his home. That sense of clarity along with the breathing exercises helped keep his emotions in check.

 _But right now breathing exercises be damned._

He was a freaking vampire - _calm down Haru_ \- and drooling at the thought of bearing his fangs (wait, did he even have those?) inside of Gou's neck! _His best friend's little sister_. Haru shriveled inside himself as he pondered on how he should tell the team.

"Argh!" His fist pounded the metal again.

But he can't.

He was _afraid_.

Never in his eighteen years has Haru craved water like he does now.

His body jolted at the sound of someone rapping at his door.

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/bows sheepishly/ Yeah...that's a cliffhanger.


	3. Bloodlust: Part Three

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Free!'

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Bloodlust: Part Three

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Makoto often wonders to himself what the point of ringing Haru's doorbell was if the teenager never responds. Then again there was no point really, especially if the door was always unlocked. But to Makoto, it was a kind of ritual mixed together with common courtesy and a lot of manners seamed into his brain by his parents. So when he knocks on the door one day and hears a scuffle, Makoto quickly runs a finger into his ear to make sure he heard right. Because never in the years Makoto's known Haru, the boy was never once out of the bath. _Maybe he arrived late?_ Makoto thought in abject horror. Quickly he checked his watch. Nope. He's on time.

"…Haru?" He calls out hesitantly. "You up, buddy?" The brunette jumped back in surprise at hearing muffled curse from inside.

 _What's Haru doing out of the bath?_

A scuffle

 _What in the world?_

"I'm coming in." Sliding open the door, Makoto cautiously walked in, kicking off his shoes as he did so. Making his way down the short hall, he turned left into the kitchen and stared in open shock at the sight. Food was everywhere. A barely touched slice of mackerel was half dumped in the bin, cans opened were lying hazardously on the counter and the sink looked as though it was beaten in by a _hammer_.

"Haru?" Makoto called out in concern. "Dude, what happened?" When the teenager turned around he yelped in surprise at seeing Haru standing behind him.

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When he heard the nock at the door, Haru felt terror strangle at his heart.

"Makoto." He whispered hoarsely. He didn't want to see him or any of his friends. What if he hurt them? The urge he felt just moments ago was still tingling his taste buds. Quickly he tried to shove the thoughts of Gou being he personal blood bag out of his mind. Stumbling to his room his foot caught on one of the table's legs causing him to trip.

"…Haru?" Hearing Makoto's call, the black haired boy felt his breath hitch. "You up, buddy?" Immediately Haru could _smell_ and _hear_ the blood pumping throughout Makoto's body. Red blood pounding through those thick healthy veins and the throbbing arteries were just within his reach –

 _No._

Haru shook the sudden cobwebs out of his mind and continued his stumbling journey into his room.

"I'm coming in."

Haru ignored Makoto and focused on the task at hand. With speed he didn't know he possessed, the teen got changed and grabbed his school work. When he re-entered the kitchen, the boy paused.

There was Makoto, his muscles and flesh thankfully covered from view. Haru silently blessed the universe for that small gift. He still needed some time to get his urges under control.

Hearing a startled yelp, Haru blinked and noticed that Makoto was clutching his heart in shock at seeing him in the doorway.

"Dude! I didn't hear you come in." Makoto huffed and suddenly looked at him in worry. "What happened here?" Sweeping an arm across the kitchen counter. Haru shrugged nonchalantly.

Seeing no point in lying he says, "Hungry."

Makoto smirks wryly. "Are you okay now?" Haru gave him a sharp nod and gestured for the door. "Wow Haru. We might actually make it to the station on time." Makoto tells him with a smile and Haru frowns. Cocking his head to the side in a silent question. "Argh." The boy groaned at him with a deadpan expression. "Don't tell me you forgot already!"

Haru shrugged.

"We're going to Samezuka Academy for the farewell meet."

With that one sentence Haru felt his heart sink. He could just picture all of the exposed skin and throbbing veins. The smell of their blood consuming him, making him snap and kill everyone. His heart was suddenly racing and Haru shook his head, stumbling back a little and drawing short breaths.

"Haru?" Makoto called in alarm. "Are you okay?"

When the teenager looked up he noticed that they were only centimeters apart. He could hear his friend's heartbeat and how it called out to him. Sickeningly Haru realized that he wanted his blood. He needed to distract his urge.

"Y-Yeah, let's go."

Quickly he sprinted out the door, Makoto following.


End file.
